Hand that man some more rope....

A relgious leader calls for the murder of an elected official in another country? Isn't that conspiracy to commit terrorism?

Apollo 11 Mission First man on the Moon

Full Screen QTVR photo from panoramas.dk.

Google Moon

Google Moon - Lunar Landing Sites

Standard Hinde Confidence

A bird story. "So yes, I'm feeling slightly ill right now with thoughts of how many things I could have done wrong already, and how many things can go wrong in the near future, but I'm going to try this anyway, because, of course, there's always the slight possiblity that this will acutally be pulled off succesfully."

Go read the story and this will make sense:

The bird flew away on its own today.

Turn your speakers down (or up, as you may wish.)

A Ukulele version of While My Guitar Gently Weeps . You laugh, I know. But, check it out! Thanks to BackupBrain.

A city on a hill

Ken Livingstone is the mayor of London. These are the last few paragraphs of his statement after today's bombing. Read the whole thing here

"Finally, I wish to speak directly to those who came to London today to take life.

I know that you personally do not fear giving up your own life in order to take others - that is why you are so dangerous. But I know you fear that you may fail in your long-term objective to destroy our free society and I can show you why you will fail.

In the days that follow look at our airports, look at our sea ports and look at our railway stations and, even after your cowardly attack, you will see that people from the rest of Britain, people from around the world will arrive in London to become Londoners and to fulfil their dreams and achieve their potential.

They choose to come to London, as so many have come before because they come to be free, they come to live the life they choose, they come to be able to be themselves. They flee you because you tell them how they should live. They don't want that and nothing you do, however many of us you kill, will stop that flight to our city where freedom is strong and where people can live in harmony with one another. Whatever you do, however many you kill, you will fail."

I have no idea if London is on a hill. But what Mr. Livingstone is talking about is the witness that a free society bears to the world. Not a new idea. But it's one that seems to have escaped the sanctimonious, paranoid, ill-suited, mistaken crowd now running things in D.C.

July 4 Parade, Mendocino, CA

July 4 Parade, Mendocino, CA
Originally uploaded by jimheid.

It's gotta be plastic. I mean they wouldn't toast a plant that big just for a parade!

From your international correspondent.

Cows in Nigeria: "Last month police in Lagos arrested a cow after it attacked and killed a bus driver who stopped to urinate by the side of the road."

Judicial Activism

With the resignation of Sandra Day O'Connor, I'd like to come out the closet as one who opposes judicial activism. For example, my feeling is that if you want women to have the right to an abortion you should elect representatives who will support that right. Not take the lazy way and rely on the courts to help you out. If you are opposed to the death penalty, then work for elected officials who believe the same way.

I'd rather have the court less involved in settling 'day to day' issues. For every Brown Vs. Board of Education, a decision which many would laud, there is a Dred Scott, a decision hopefully universally vilified. (By those who even know it exists.)

Imagine what this country would be like if we had an engaged electorate who understood the value of participation in political activities.

Shelby Foote - RIP

Shelby Foote was surprised that Bush stood by Rumsfeld after the Abu Ghraib scandal broke: "'Lincoln went through six leaders of the Army before he got to Grant, whom he trusted enough to leave alone. All the others always had to look back over their shoulders. And Lincoln had to. They had wrong strategies and wrong notions of war.'"